Achievement of Former CSMP Students at Fourth Grade. Evaluation Report 7-B-5. Extended Pilot Trial of the Comprehensive School Mathematics Program.

Herbert, Martin

The Comprehensive School Mathematics Program (CSMP) is a program of CEMREL, Inc., one of the national educational laboratories, and was funded by the National Institute of Education (NIE). Its major purpose is the development of curriculum materials for grades kindergarten through 6. A comparison of student achievement at the end of fourth grade on the Mathematics Applied to Novel Situations (MANS) Scales was conducted in a district where CSMP was taught only in kindergarten through grade 3, after which the district's regular program was used. These classes were compared to classes with no CSMP experience. The CSMP-background classes had significantly higher scores on nine scales: 1) two of six computation measures; 2) three of five estimation scales; 3) two of five evaluating number relationship; 4) one of three other number system measures; and 5) one of two place value scales. On no scale was there a significant difference in favor of the non-CSMP classes. It was viewed as surprising that the data were strikingly similar to those obtained in a previous large study in which the CSMP group had been with this curriculum through the fourth grade. (MP)